Blog Archive

It's been a long time since I posted about Italian dual citizenship and it dawned on me that newbies stumbling upon this blog might really have to dig to find the complete set of posts and first person accounts for my process of obtaining dual citizenship here in Italy. To that effect, below is a laundry list of the posts I've written on the topic:

Also, I'd like to write a quick (as in, one paragraph) summary of the process as I experienced that makes it look incredibly simple when indeed was it insanely slow, frustrating and mind-numbing.

How I got my Italian dual citizenship in a nutshell...
In late 2009 my husband and I decided that we wanted to live abroad, but could not figure out how to do it legally. We hit a roadblock at every turn. Then, by chance, I found this thing called "Italian dual citizenship" -- could it be real?! In early 2010 I began the process of requesting, collecting, translating and certifying all of the documents necessary to begin the process. I first attempted to go through my maternal side, but discovered immigration documents that prevented it. I had much better luck with the paternal side (and discovered some family secrets in the process!). I didn't want to wait 1.5 years for an appointment at a consulate, so we packed up, moved to Italy and went through the process here. I started in January 2011 and received the citizenship in May 2012. At times the process was slowed down because of the Italian bureaucracy, at times the American bureaucracy, and at times my totally bewilderment and frustration. Showing up at the office pregnant in spring 2012 certainly helped the process along and I was given a final document -- my own birth certificate -- to fix and submit. I've been an Italian citizenship for over a year now and I enjoy spending my time navigating tax laws for two countries.

My daughter was born with both US and Italian citizenship which makes her life in Italy both exceedingly complicated and easy. If you've lived in Italy, you understand this statement. perfectly.